Great Big Adventure in Yellowstone National Park

For Girl Scout Cadette Emily P. from Olathe, Kansas, the idea of traveling and exploring new places was extremely intriguing. So naturally, she was very excited when she discovered the Girl Scout destinations’ program! Emily spent hours combing through all the location options and finally decided on taking a trip out west to explore the mountains, a natural landmark that she had never seen in person before.

“This was a chance to meet new people and learn more about nature,” Emily said.

Emily’s mom and friend were curious as well so they decided to make a trip of it with Emily! So the three ladies loaded up the car and spent 2.5 days driving across the US to Yellowstone National Park.

Emily arrived at Teton Science School at Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming and met up with 24 other Girl Scouts from all around the country. Prior to her departure, the group got an email thread going to virtually introduce themselves. These would be the girls that she would learn and explore with for the next six days.

The first couple of days the girls stayed in little cabins at the school, got to know each other and learned more about the area and wildlife around where they were staying.

On the third day, they packed up their cabins and headed off to explore and camp in Yellowstone.

While in the park Emily and her group were exploring around the base of Devil’s Tower, one of the park’s most prominent rock structures. There were large boulders at the bottom, suitable for some impromptu amateur climbing and exploring. Before this trip, Emily wouldn’t have thought to explore, she didn’t consider herself much of a climber. However, at this particular instance she was surrounded by her Girl Scout sisters who mustered the courage to try it out and Emily found herself right along with them, and made it to the top of the boulder pile.

“I feel more experienced and braver. I used to be scared about a lot of things, now I’m not as scared of them,” Emily explained.

Emily’s favorite part of the trip was learning how to canoe. Although she had multiple outdoor experiences with her troop, Emily had yet to experience this exciting outdoor activity!

“I was the motor in the front because I was the least experienced,” she said.

Through this activity, she learned how to work in a team, communicating when and where she was paddling with the more experienced canoe buddy in the back.

“I have more knowledge to take back to my troop the next time we go on a camping trip,” Emily said.

The most challenging part of the trip wasn’t camping at night in the 50 degree weather, learning to canoe or pitching her tent; it was hiking the 4+ miles a day!

“I don’t think I was physically prepared for that much hiking!” Emily explained.

She didn’t let that stop her from keeping up with the group and experiencing all the awesome things that Yellowstone had to offer them, though.

“It was a great experience and I would love to do it again.”

Emily has already been on the Girl Scout destinations’ page browsing the trips for 2016 and is anxious to see the full list that publishes today! Another outdoor adventure program or possibly a trip that would put her on a plane and take her abroad for the first time in her life are both on her radar!

It was clear to Emily’s mother, Janet that Girl Scout destinations are the way to go. “I wanted her to get the experience of meeting other girls, trying new things and just to see the rest of the world. These are places I wouldn’t have been able to take her without the destinations,” Janet said.